I wish I could help, but I don't know anymore...

As someone who spent 90% of their time as an artist not showing work to anyone...I can say after awhile it really does suck not sharing it, and it's even worse when it feels like no one even sees it.

My biggest thing that keeps me going is the consistent fans, even through the base is small, they keep coming back. That shows me that something is there.

The thing that matters even more than the first, is the other artist friends I have that build me up when I make something. Even if there's some critique there, it's pretty important to me that I have friends that are also good at what they do, and are willing to offer compliments and help when needed. Of course reciprocating those ideals back is very important.

Another thing that helps me is comparing pieces done in the same year, and when I can see actual improvement, that's a great feeling.

Finally, I push myself to grow, and even when I don't feel like it, I keep going. Remember, feelings and emotions are fleeting, so it's important to just keep on trucking when the bad feelings are hitting hard. Eventually, I'll break free of those. So...I do art regardless of whether I'm happy or sad, I always at least try to put pen to paper.

Just try so hard and learn everything from the start. I was not an artist at the very beginning. The only thing I could remember about my terrible past is that I could not even draw a proper human in a paper. My art sucks and whenever I posted them on Facebook, I got laughing at. So I buried myself in the room, spent more than 14 hours per day just to learn how to draw human poses on YouTube. Believe me, your final result will redeem all the hardship, time and effort you've put in. Now i am working for a few manga artists and korean comic artists, though I am not from artistic area and do not study digital painting in university. Just try your best, imrpove the artline day by day, your readers will notice that. Wish you best luck!

I like your art. Very Charles Addams.
If you're mostly interested in telling stories, try writing for a while.
And the usual advice applies for this site : vertical scrolling format, color,..Supposedly it can make a big difference.
Either way, going around and comparing yourself to others on here....let's just say I haven't found it to be very productive. The sheer number of people better than me at this who somehow have less subs, and the even larger number of comics who's single comments have more likes than my comic has views....I don't think focusing on that is going to help me much.

Why you beating yourself up for not being able to compete with companies and their advertising budgets? You think the Internet was made for small artists and not big businesses? Like who am you even comparing yourself to? Me trying to be supportive but c'mon.

Honestly just be more like me, a person who literally doesn’t care what others think of me.

Wow, this sounds exactly like something I would've written 2 or 3 years ago...not because it's juvenile or anything, but because I wasn't cynical yet then. At this point, I've moved past despair to a sort of productive numbness, occasionally interrupted by temporary bouts of apathy. It's almost not even worth complaining anymore. Almost. ^^;

This is going to sound tired and cliche'd, but...I don't think there's any way around just having your own reasons to love what you do. Think about the magic you experienced when you were first coming up with your stories and characters, especially your most important ones...think about how much you liked to create even before all these torturous numbers came into the mix.

...I'm assuming this is going to create positive feelings. ^^; But whether it does or it doesn't, it's something you have to think about: If the internet suddenly disappeared, would you keep writing/drawing? If the answer is yes, then you might as well keep posting; you've got nothing to lose. If the answer is no...then tbh, I think you should consider other options. If there's nothing inside you to keep the spark alive, things are only going to get harder and sadder.

...I've actually never had this problem; I've always liked my art (even when it was bad). Which honestly makes it worse; it's one thing to be upset that no one likes your work when you feel it may or may not be worth liking. If no one likes your work but you think it's perfection incarnate, that's a whole other bag of beans...

To actually answer the question, though...I dunno, I kinda try to think about all the artists and authors before me who were never recognized during their time. I think Van Gogh only sold one painting while he was alive (and what a miserable life...). But was he good regardless? Hell yes.

Yeah, that's another one I can't really relate to...but I guess I'd recommend looking back on your old goals. Like when I was a kid, I used to save screenshots of anime art I really liked and go "someday, I'll be able to draw as good as that".

Today I look at 'em and they don't even inspire me anymore. Not because I now realize they're actually bad or anything (well, some of them are) but because I'm just so comfortable with the way I've grown and with what I do that my old ideas of the heights I "needed" to reach are just...not relevant anymore.

That's a source of pride, I guess. ^^;

'______'....

...Shoot, I never figured that one out...

...Well, my own self-esteem saves me again here, kinda, because I don't think I could ever think of myself as a "worthless artist". For me, the worst-case scenario is 'dying with my genius completely unrecognized by the ignorant masses'. It still really sucks, but at least I'll always be on my side. ^^;

However, that doesn't automatically make it easier to live with...I'm already getting badly depressed about my situation, and I'm still young. I still have school to fall back on as an excuse, even; what's gonna happen to my brain when I have ALL my free time available to give to my projects and I still get '60 views, 30 likes, 0 comments'?? The future looks kinda scary...

...I dunno. Maybe I'll never make it. But in the end, I'll at least know that I tried. At least I didn't waste my whole life wishing instead of taking a chance. At least I gave my characters a chance to be known and loved by people besides me. And at least the few readers that did enjoy my work got to benefit from it, even if I'll never know how much.

And at least I had some fun. That's the most important thing; knowing that it wasn't just suffering from beginning to end. There were high points...and no matter what happens in the future, I'm sure there'll be more.

It's understandable to be tired an impatient. I've been there many times. And in my current state of what some might argue is a reasonable amount of popularity -- some won't believe me when I say I'm constantly anxious about how people will take my stories.

The thing is. I put my desires into action and keep doing the things that I've noticed in the past has worked and stop doing the things that don't work. I lean in to things I enjoy making and learnt to make it well.

When I'm busy actually just telling the story I want to tell, it distracts me from worrying about what others think of it. People want to hear confident and honestly told stories. They will respect a creator who is unwavering in their belief of their own story--whether or not they enjoy the story itself.

And that takes consistent work. Not stop and go, not overworking, not changing methods to find a shortcut-- It's the grinding daily work of finishing what you choose to start and placing it where people can see it. Then move on to the next thing.

How to keep believing in yourself when there's hardly anyone else who does? Because you cannot rely on anyone to do your believing for you.

Because the future is unknown, in combination with studying your craft and continuing to finish pieces of work, a creator has to cultivate an enduring faith in their ability to express them self through their craft.

For me, I just have to believe I can tell a complete story, because I've done it before and every time i sit down to work I deliberately try to get a little bit better at whatever I'm doing.

How to like your art when nobody knows or cares it exists? Disregard what "others" like and make what you love. Be honest with yourself. Are you really making art or story that You personally want to exist in the world or are you making it to get others attention?

People will care if you share with them something honest and genuine. Art is a reflection of the artist who made it. And this takes a bit of courage. I'm consistently anxious about how people will receive my work--but i am honest with myself that I really badly want the story and art to exist and no one will do it for me.

That people enjoy my work is a bonus. I prioritize MY enjoyment of the story--bolstered of course with always learning how best to execute it so others am can receive what I'm trying to communicate with them.

How to be proud of your improvement even though there isn't an increase in your popularity to go with it?
There is rarely a one to one correlation between improvement and attention given (Popularity is nothing more than a measure of how much attention is given to something).

Measure yourself to your past self's finished work. Both technically in terms of skills but also any external feedback growth. It has to be a frank and honest accounting. If you find you're doing a lot of the same actions and same thinking for a while and its not bringing results then it's a problem with your actions not the feedback. And sometimes after trying something new you have to stick with it long enough to see a pattern in the feedback and keep doing more of the stuff that you notice is growing however marginally because that's how you weed away the methods that you notice aren't working.

The only things I'm proud of are the things I've finished. It's when you focus on what you can control that you can shift away from relying on external uncontrollable factors to feel good. I don't give any external thing the right to affect me mentally unless I allow it. I can't control external feedback, and it can't control my decisions--but it can inform them.

How to avoid finding yourself worthless as an artist because you know you will never make it.
Two things. Don't assume you'll never make it. If you think you can or think you cant. You're right. Your beliefs dictates your actions. Your actions have consequences outside your control. If you begin from the assumption you won't make it, you'll act in a manner that expresses that and that is exactly the reason why you won't.

Second. Shift from avoiding feeling worthless to reaching for something worthwhile. This goes back to creating what you love.

Your art is a reflection of you. You have a unique worldview. Don't be afraid to express it. Figure out what you want to exist in the world and make that. Make it because you feel strongly that it must exist and no one is willing to do it but you.

My answers aren't easy and I don't expect anyone to take them. I can only say that it's this manner of taking responsibility for my art and storytelling that has worked for me.

Ugh! I feel this!
There's nothing quite like working your butt off on an art piece for a week and being so excited to show others only to have nobody take an interest. I mean, art is my therapy, my hobby, my favorite activity, but that doesn't mean it doesn't sting when my hard work gets ignored.
I know I suck at the whole social media aspect. Quite frankly I HATE it. I hate the time it takes away from doing art. I hate how it feels like shouting into a void. I hate how it feels so transactional. "I'll share your stuff it you share mine!" I have to set a daily reminder to post my artwork of the day cause I find it so disheartening.
I am horrible at making art friend too. I try. I've never been good at making friends. That's WHY I have a webcomic.

I dunno to be honest, I just know at the bottom of my heart my storytelling is good enough, plus I sorta like the challenge trying to get people to acknowledge my skills, so I think you maybe you gotta find out your strongest point n develop it n pour some confidence n ego into it

Hi! I'm exactly in the same situation as yours! I've working on my webcomics for about a year and barely get 4 views per chapter, maybe 10 as much, no comments, sometimes a like or two. I mean, I appreciate those readers who are still there, but sometimes it feels quite lonely there...

Now, to answer your questions:
How to keep believing in yourself when there's hardly anyone else who does?
Well, I actually just stopped believing and shrug it off? What I mean is, considering how unpopular I am and how no matter how hard I try, how much I improve I don't seem to get anywhere, I have ended up considering I may not be able to make a living out of comics. But I guess that's...fine? I mean, I still want to keep creating my comics simply because I love it and even if it is only me, myself, reading them, because comics are my life and I love making them. So I have considered other options to make a living while working on my webcomics at the same time.

I know maybe this is not what you may want to read, but, I think it is fine... the fact that you are not making money out of your work doesn't mean it is bad. Sometimes it is a matter of trends, of what's popular now, of what people want to read right now and somehow we may have a story that simply doesn't go with the flow.
Like many friends have told me that my story is not bad, but that is way too "peculiar", not in a bad way, but just way too "peculiar". Of course, that makes it difficult to be found.
But who knows? Maybe in a year or two or in ten years or more someone would appreciate it for what it is??

How to like your art when nobody knows or cares it exists?
Well, I just feel like if I enjoy making it, that's enough. I am an artist since the moment I create art even if nobody cares about it. Yeah, there are times I feel discouraged as well, but it's ok, it's ok if nobody cares as long as you care.

How to be proud of your improvement even though there isn't an increase in your popularity to go with it?
Sometimes things go the other way around. I put my case as an example. I used to draw anime style, more specific, shojo manga style. I didn't have a huge fanbase, but at least there were a couple of likes here and there. Now, as I developed my own unique style, I lost all those people and now I have no fanbase at all, just a couple of my friends who say they like my drawings. But yeah, as I said before, I think it is a matter of what's trendy. If not, just look at the front page of any webcomics site, see what's popular, see the similarities.

How to avoid finding yourself worthless as an artist because you know you will never make it?
Because you are already a worthy artist since the moment you create. And it's ok if art is not your main income. What I mean is, it's not all about making money or being popular. As long as you are creating, you are already a successful artist.

I hope my answers help you somehow...at least this is what I tell myself as an also unpopular artist.

I'm not sure how useful my perspective will be since we seem to have rather different philosophies, but I'll give it a shot anyways In short I can 100% empathize with where you're coming from. I don't dwell on it much but I'd be lying if I didn't admit that I wish my work had more reach than it does currently. Buuuut what keeps my mind off of that are two things:

1.) I fully understand that my art, while not bad, has a looooong ways to go before it'll be at a caliber that will draw that kind of attention probably. &

2.) I just approach art for fun/as a hobby, so the lows aren't as low as someone pursuing it professionally and falling short I would imagine, while the highs are just as high.

Reading passages like this is exactly why I evaluated what I wanted to do when I was approaching the end of highschool and decided that being an artist wasn't for me:

I don't envy that at all, sounds stressful as heck I knew that I didn't want to fight tooth and nail to make it in a hyper competitive market such as art, or even more specifically comics, so I ended up investigating other career paths instead... with that said,

In part because I have my own agenda and goals to accomplish, and while external affirmation feels good I don't need it to work towards said goals, and in part because even though they may not be massive in number, there are people who believe in me so I like to keep working hard for them too

Since this is largely entertainment for me, I make sure to always be working on something that I have fun drawing... so liking it isn't hard! I get frustrated when things don't turn out right, or when I post something and it gets very little feedback, but it's just motivation to work harder next time.

Cuz improvement is like... awesome! And steps towards appealing to more people! Seeing noticeable breakthroughs in skill gets me pumped up to draw even more. And realistically even if that step isn't the one that gets a following... it's a step in the right direction nonetheless.

I feel like this depends on what your "it" is. For me, I know that I'll make "it" because it is simply continuing to improve my craft and making sure that the next illustration or comic is even better than the last! I see that improvement each step of the way so there's no way I'll not get there. However if my "it" was something like "make a comic that gets super popular" or "get X followers by 2021" or "make X dollars a year off of just art"... then i dunno. I try to avoid setting goals like those because they're so far out of your control until you actually get there LOL it's a good way to set yourself up for disappointment imo. All you can really do is continue striving to improve and settle on reasonable goals that you have authority over.

An unsolicited piece of more specific advice: I stalked your Tapas profile and found your twitter and... am shocked that someone with a pretty cool art style and who posts semi-frequently doesn't have more followers, tbh. I notice you barely ever use hashtags- maybe try sprinkling more of those in? I feel like it's hard-if-not-impossible for people who aren't already following you to find your posts if you don't tag them lol. That may well be part of the problem, on that platform at least.

Best of luck moving forward!

I see your comic has 67 subscribers. My main comic has 79, so not much different.

From my personal experience... I started working seriously on a comic starting in 2007 and had about the same amount of engagement then as I do now. I'd get a new sub here and there and usually 1-3 comments per update. And then I became addicted to an MMO and took an unexpected 2 year hiatus. From that I can tell you, please don't take a hiatus if you can avoid it. If you can work through this difficult time and break through it, it will be worth it.

The hiatus I took caused me shame and I still regret it to this day. I wouldn't say this would happen to you though. Our situations are obviously completely different. But that feeling of shame and regret is now what drives me to keep drawing.

Not only that, but I also lost all of my active readers. I had to start again at basically zero which is why I'm still at the same amount as before.

You probably wouldn't believe that these two pages are by the same person:

Summary

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And I just think... I could have been at that most recent page 2 years sooner had I kept drawing. Looking at your drawings now, it is even better than where I was in 2007 so you have a much better starting point. The best way to get better is by drawing a lot and also study a lot. When I was in college, I did a lot of gesture drawing and some still life drawings (god, I hated them though) that helped improve my art. But also just studying different techniques and applying what I have learned as a graphic designer have helped. I also started collecting references of drawings I like as inspiration for my own comic.

If you don't mind me saying, I do see some things more on the objective side that may help with improving your art right away. I will put it behind the spoiler here in case you aren't looking for some feedback and can just ignore.

I think the most important things are... don't give up. Learn from others, don't compare to others. Have a back up plan. Like, I learned graphic design since I knew being a pro comic artist would take forever. I'm 34 now. The only reason I'm here is stubbornness.

Graphic design is a great thing to learn since graphic design and comics are basically the same thing. They are all about the absolute clearest communication between creator and audience.

Always look around for a new technique you can try. Don't settle on anything. Try to draw something every day, if you can. Try to draw meaningful things. Do studies of things. Look around and think about how you would draw something.

In 2022, you'll think "Wow, look at this artwork I have done now. Myself from 2020 couldn't even imagine doing this." And the same thing will happen again and again.

You really have to do it for yourself first.

There are clearly a lot of people here who know you can do it. You can see that you have a clear understanding for creating art. I think you are only lacking experience and drive. Do it. You can become incredible.

One of the big issues I'm seeing more and more is we tend to put a value on our work based on a number given to us by a website that has it's own motives rather than turning to people we trust (like teachers, family, friends, or clients) for their input. The problem with that is each website has a brand, and the people on that website are ONLY looking for that brand. So instead of seeing these platforms as a proof of your validity, see it instead as a publisher that has it's own focus and it's own agenda.

If your project gets rejected, it's the same as sending a project into a publisher and getting that rejection letter. It happens. It happens to all of us. And always remember that Tapas could be gone in 10 years. Think back to Myspace, think back to Neopets, think back to LJ--these sites come and go. The art you make is forever.

So to answer your questions, because I've had so many years of feeling similar feelings (my comic has just one less sub than yours so we're in the same pool )

How to keep believing in yourself when there's hardly anyone else who does?

How to like your art when nobody knows or cares it exists?

How to be proud of your improvement even though there isn't an increase in your popularity to go with it?

How to avoid finding yourself worthless as an artist because you know you will never make it?

There's a Cinderella story called Demon slayer or Kimetsu no yaiba. A manga who had been there for 4 years and it almost non-existent until the 2019 Anime, it explodes the popularity right of the bat.

Early art-style is very unlikable but it grew later on so i do believe if we don't give up our work, who knows if we become next popular soon.

My dream is getting Anime adaptation of my comic just like Tower of God and i won't giving up until that day happen. Keep it up and always believing yourself.

Three things I quick want to mention since most people have done a bang-up job with their responses is:

1. YOU HAVE CONTROL OVER YOUR CONTENT
   -In the past, I've gotten criticism over the way my comics look (since their mostly hand drawn). Which is natural because a key part of why someone is invested in a series is because of its art style and how it differentiates compared to others. It doesn't have to be digital for it to great. Even if your art doesn't look the way you want it to, the point is that you're consistently putting more of your content out there. I'm not inclined to believe that there isn't at least 50 people who don't like what your putting out.

2. KNOW AND ENGAGE WITH YOUR AUDIENCE
   -Obviously people don't subscribe to series that don't fit their niches. Contrary to what people think, if you advertise your series to other creators, you'll be surprised to find that others like your series, they just never knew where to look for it. The profile wall is there for a reason, use it as often as you need to so that you can let others know about future updates, I can't stress that enough.

3. LEARN TO HAVE PERSEVERANCE
   -Remember that popularity doesn't happen overnight. You started your series two years ago. Think back to creators early on who had to wait decades to see a spike in the popularity of their series. If they never gave up, do me a favor and toss those negative mindsets in the garbage. Will you have days where no one pays attention to your comics in particular? Of course. However, you will have days where all of your subs read and pay attention to everything and you'll feel better about where you are currently, believe me. You can't get discouraged because like you, a lot of us are in the same boat.